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Saturday, April 19, 2014

NBA Playoffs Simulation - Portland Trail Blazers vs Houston Rockets

These are two of the top scoring teams in the NBA and we should be in for some entertaining basketball! The Rockets averaged 107.7 points per game while the Trail Blazers put up 106 per night. Our simulation has the Blazers winning in 7 games.

Game 1

Trail Blazers 106Rockets 110 (OT)

Rockets lead series 1-0

This was a tight one the entire game, as neither team held a double digit lead.

Dwight Howard had a team high 22 points for the Rockets, and he also pulled down 11 rebounds and blocked 2 shots. He was just 2-6 from the foul line and that nearly cost them this game. It'll be interesting to see how that plays out the rest of the series.

James Harden struggled shooting the ball as he was just 4-14 from the field but he finished with 19 points, 11 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Chandler Parsons only had 11 points but had a game high 15 rebounds.

Wesley Matthews had a game high 23 pints on 6-10 shooting, which included 3-6 from downtown. LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum each added 20 points. Batum filled up the stat sheet with 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks, but he was just 7-23 from the field and 2-13 from downtown.

Game 2

Trail Blazers 87
Rockets 101

Rockets lead series 2-0

Despite shooting 64% from the foul line, the Rockets were able to win this game by holding the Trail Blazers to just 37% shooting from the field. Houston also outscored Portland in the paint 42-20.

Dwight Howard had a monster game with 19 points and 16 rebounds. He was 6-11 from the field and 7-12 from the foul line. Both Jeremy Lin and Donatas Motiejunas scored 19 points off the bench. James Harden was 3-12 from the field but finished with 15 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists.

Game 3

Rockets lead series 2-1

Portland shot the ball very well at 52% and their defense held Houston to just 35% shooting. Both teams hit eight 3's, but Portland only attempted 16, while Houston attempted 29.

LaMarcus Aldridge dominated this game with 38 points (15-25) and 9 rebounds. Wes Matthews and Nicolas Batum were a combined 8-14 from behind the arch. Robin Lopez played great defense with 3 blocked shots and 3 steals. He also scored 8 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.

Chandler Parsons and James Harden led the Rockets with 17 points a piece. They both shot 6-17 from the field and were a combined 5-18 from behind the arch. Dwight Howard finished with another double-double (12 & 10) but was just 6-16 from the field.

Game 4

Rockets 95Trail Blazers 104

Series is tied 2-2

The Trail Blazers continue to play great defense as they held the Rockets to 36% shooting in game 4.

LaMarcus Aldridge continues to impress and he follows up his 38 & 9 performance with 37 points and 17 rebounds. He was 11-17 from the field and 13-14 from the foul line. Damian Lillard had his best game of the series, as he scored 16 points (7-14), grabbed 4 rebounds and dished out 5 assists. Robin Lopez and Nicolas Batum each had 3 blocked shots.

Dwight Howard did all he could to keep up with the game Aldridge was having, as he finished with 18 points and 18 rebounds. For the second straight game he struggled shooting as he was 7-19 from the field. Patrick Beverley led the Rockets in scoring with 24 points. Beverley knocked down four 3's.

Game 5

Trail Blazers 124 (OT)
Rockets 122

Trail Blazers lead series 3-2

It looked as if the Trail Blazers would run away with this game early on, as they led 35-23 after the 1st quarter. The Rockets would outscore the Blazers in the final 3 quarters to force overtime but would fall short. This was the second overtime game in the series. The Rockets won game 1 in overtime.

Portland was deadly from downtown, as they hit 16 of their 34 attempts. Nicolas Batum went off, as he hit 8 of 12 from behind the arch, and led the Blazers with 31 points, 10 rebounds and 3 assists. Wesley Matthews was 5-10 from downtown as he added 20 points. LaMarcus Aldridge was 10-12 from the field and finished with 27 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks. Robin Lopez added a double-double as well with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Damian Lillard was quiet with 6 points on 2-9 shooting, but he did dish out 12 assists.

Houston hit 11 of their own 3's, but they were just 17-31 from the foul line and that ultimately cost them this game. Dwight Howard was 16-22 from the field for 38 points but he only hit 6 of his 15 free throws. Both Jeremy Lin and Patrick Beverley scored 21 points and dished out 5 assists. James Harden nearly tripled doubled with 15 points, 8 rebounds and 13 assists. Omer Asik grabbed 10 rebounds off the bench.

Through the first 5 games, James Harden is just 26-75 (34%) from the field. He's also only 10-38 (26%) from behind the arch.

Game 6

Rockets 125
Trail Blazers 104

Series is tied 3-3

The Rockets found their offense again in game 6 as they shot 53% from the field and were 10-17 from behind the arch.

James Harden showed signs of life with a 38 point performance. Harden also had 6 rebounds and 7 assists. He was 12-19 from the field and 4-6 from behind the arch. Patrick Beverley had a double-double with 18 points and 11 assists. Jeremy Lin and Donatas Motiejunas combined to score 30 points off the bench. Dwight Howard was quiet offensively with 11 points, but he grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked 6 shots.

Damian Lillard led the Blazers with 28 points and 7 assists. Nicolas Batum continued his hot shooting as he hit six more 3's, giving him 14 over the last two games. Thomas Robinson was 6-7 off the bench for 13 points.

Game 7

Trail Blazers 113
Rockets 97

Trail Blazers win series 4-3

The Portland Trail Blazers were able to force 23 turnovers against the Rockets in game 7 and came away with 17 steals in the game. Portland only turned the ball over 10 times. Portland hit eleven 3's and Houston missed 10 free throws (21-31).

It was a great team effort for Portland, as all five starters for the Blazers were in double figures - Nicolas Batum (18), Robin Lopez (17), LaMarcus Aldridge (16), Wesley Matthews (16), Damian Lillard (16). Mo Williams was also in double figures with 11 points off the bench. Of those 17 steals Portland had, Dorell Wright and Batum each had 4.

James Harden did all he could to keep the Rockets season alive as he scored 33 points, but it wasn't enough. Houston dominated the boards (52-35) but they were just too careless with the ball. Jeremy Lin had 7 turnovers off the bench, and Terrence Jones had 5. Dwight Howard had his 6th double-double in 7 games, with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Chandler Parsons had another disappointing game with 11 points on 3-14 shooting.